Back scrubber

ABSTRACT

FOR USE WHILE TAKING A SHOWER AR TUB BATH AND IN LIEU OF A SOAP-LADEN WASH CLOTH OR SPONGE, A BACK SOAPING AND SCRUBBING APPLIANCE COMPRISING A SCRUBBER MADE OF OPENMESHED TULLE-LIKE NYLON OF A PRESCRIBED LENGTH AND WIDTH, AND HAVING FLEXIBLE LOOP-SHAPED HANDLES AT ITS RESPECTIVE ENDS. THE MEDIAN BODY PORTION OF THE SCRUBBER IS PROVIDED WITH ONE OR MORE ACCESSIBLE POCKETS CONTAINING SOAP. BY CATCHING HOLD OF AND PROPERLY MANIPULATING THE HANDLES THE SCRUBBER CAB BE SWISHED AND SWASHED BACK AND FORTH IN A MANNER TO EFFECTUALLY WASH THE UPPER PART OF THE BACK AND SHOULDERS.

July 4,1972 0. E. JENNINGS BACK SGRUBBER Filed Oct. 23. 1970 Doris E Jennings INVENTOR. 40629 By 3M5);

Patented July 4, 1972 3,674,374 BACK SCRUBBER Doris E. Jennings, 4754 W. Evans Creek Road,

Rogue River, Oreg. 97537 Filed Oct. 23, 1970, Ser. No. 83,449 Int. Cl. A47k'7/03 US. Cl. 401--8 2 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE For use while taking a shower or tub bath and in lieu of a soap-laden wash cloth or sponge, a back soaping and scrubbing appliance comprising a scrubber made of openmeshed tulle-like nylon of a prescribed length and width, and having flexible loop-shaped handles at its respective ends. The median body portion of the scrubber is provided with one or more accessible pockets containing soap. By catching hold of and properly manipulating the handles the scrubber can be swished and swashed back and forth in a manner to effectually wash the upper part of the back and shoulders.

This invention relates to that field of appliances which lend themselves for acceptable use whilethe user is taking a shower or a bath and has to do with a uniquely improved soaping and scrubbing appliance which is ideally suitable for effectually soaping and scrubbing the upper back and shoulders of the user.

For background purposes it is to be pointed out that the state of the art to which the present invention relates can be ascertained by referring, if desired, to a combined back scrubbing cloth and soap holder revealed in Design Pat. 126,875 of Apr. 29, 1941. Also and as further exemplary of a bath cloth which is usuable for washing ones back and shoulders reference may be had to a patent to Hickman, 2,439,249 of Apr. 6, 1948.

It is an object of the present invention to improve upon the aforementioned prior patents and any other similarly constructed and usable prior art adaptations by providing a soap holding back scrubber which is made of flexible open-work fibrous material, has pocket means for insertable and removable cakes of soap and is equipped with practical and easy-to-use handling means.

Briefly the appliance is characterized by a scrubber of a length and predetermined width that it can be placed and retentively held in reciprocable wiping contact with predetermined surface areas of the users back and shoulders which, as is known, are difiicult to reach with an ordinary wash cloth or sponge when taking a shower or tub bath. The herein disclosed scrubber is made of open-meshed flexible light weight durable material and has end portions which are provided with readily accessible holding and handling straps. These straps are of elongated looped form and are adapted to be gripped by the users hand in a manner to shiftably draw and swish the scrubber back and forth in a manner to achieve the results desired.

More specifically, the scrubber is made from a sheet of flexible open-meshed nylon or equivalent material which is folded upon itself in a manner to provide a plurality of confronting plies which are conveniently set forth as cooperating opposed and coacting walls.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a view in perspective of a back scrubber constructed in accordance with the principles of the invention and showing the return-bent transverse ends provided with the open loop-like handles or hand grips.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged detail section taken approximately on the plane of the section line 2-4 of FIG. I, looking in the direction of the indicating arrows.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged section at right angles taken on the plane of the vertical section line 33 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a section taken on the line 44 of FIG. 1 and suitably enlarged.

And FIG. 5 is an enlarged detail section taken on the horizontal section line 5-5 of FIG. 1.

As already mentioned, the scrubber, as such, is made from an elongated sheet of flexible open-meshed material. This sheet however is not herein shown except in the form it takes after the component portions are creased and folded into a plurality of coacting plies or laminations. The handles at the ends of the scrubber are likewise formed from smaller pieces or sheets of open-meshed material folded in a manner to be specifically set forth.

By considering the folded sheet and with reference in particular to FIGS. 1 to 3, inclusive, it will be evident that the so-called finished scrubber, which is of requisite length and width as illustrated in FIG. 1, is denoted by the numeral 6. The aforementioned sheet is folded upon itself to provide a rounded crease as at 8 (FIG. 3) and in a manner to define a first pair of opposed outer plies or walls which are of duplicate construction and are designated at 10. The bottom portions (FIG. 3) of these walls are folded and directed upwardly as at 12 to provide a second pair of inner opposed plies or walls 14- whose upper lengthwise edges are folded upon themselves as at 16 to provide depending walls, that is a third pair of terminal walls 18 which are differentiated as flap-like walls. The walls of the first pair 10 cooperating with the intervening walls 14 of the second pair define soap pockets 20 into which the terminal flap-like walls 18 extend. It follows that the over-all elongated folded sheet defines a scrubber characterized by six interrelated plies or walls as brought out in both FIGS. 2 and 3. The pockets 20 (two or more pockets being provided as shown in FIG. 1) are defined by transverse stitching 22 which define the pockets. It will be evident that access to the pockets is had by way of the unstitched portions of the walls 14 and 18. The flap-like walls 18, which are tucked down into the pockets, permit access to be had to the pockets and at the same time assist in keeping the small cakes of soap in a captive state.

Experience has shown that the thus folded and constructed tubular scrubber should be of an adequate length to be shifted back and forth much in the manner of using an elongated Turkish towel in drying ones back and shoulders. The over-all length may vary slightly but the width is proportional with that suggested in the views of the drawing keeping in mind that the width dimension should not be too wide for efficient swish-swashing the scrubber. For strength and lightness in weight and satisfactory soaping results the material employed resembles tulle (such as used in constructing veils) and is preferably nylon. The return-bent terminal end portions as brought out in FIGS. 1 and 5 are designated at 24 and are stitched at 26 to the end portions 28 of the loop-1ike handles 30.

The loop-shaped handles 30 are preferably narrow within the band-like scrubber and hereagain suitable strips or pieces of nylon or equivalent open-meshed material is used. Also the strips of material are folded in the manner best shown in FIG. 4 where it will be seen that the primary bend or crease is denoted at 32 to provide outer plies or walls 34, these walls being joined by folds 36 to the adjacent inner plies or walls 38' which in turn are bent upon themselves to define the abutting centralized or interior walls 40. The terminal end portions 28 are stitched between the bent portions 24 as shown in FIG. 1 and particularly in FIG. 5 and the bight portions are denoted at 42.

It is believed that by examining the over-all scrubber 6 with the attached handles 30 in FIG. 1 a clear and comprehensive understanding of the scrubber, its general and specific construction, and the manner of use will be clear. Accordingly, a more extended description is deemed to be unnecessary.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

'1. A manually held and manipulatable back scrubbing appliance comprising a scrubber made from an elongated sheet of flexible open-meshed material folded upon itself in a manner to provide a first pair of opposed outer walls, a second pair of inner opposed walls which are situated between interior surfaces of said outer walls, and a third pair of terminal walls which are flap-like, are joined by folded return-bends to coacting length-wise edges of said second pair of inner Walls, and have free edge portions which are sandwiched and tucked into available spaces of the respectively cooperable outer and inner walls whereby to provide six side-by-side Walls, said walls having transverse end portions and median transverse portions stitched and thus connected together, the respective transverse lines of stitching being spaced apart and providing individual open-mouthed pockets for soap, flexible straps connected to the respective transverse end portions of said scrubber and providing holding and actuating handles.

2. The scrubber defined in and according to claim 1, and wherein said sheet of material is made of tulle-like nylon, and said straps are loop-like and have free end portions which are connected to cooperating transverse end portions of the folded scrubber.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,598,574 8/ 1926' Gibson 4018 2,035,014 3/1936 Schaefer 401-201 2,830,313 4/ 8 Mountanos 15-222 X 3,268,938 8/1966 Smith 15222 X 3,167,805 2/ 1965 Zuppinger et al 401201 1,334,716 3/1920 Shont 4018 2,730,745 1/1956 Norman 15--222 X FOREIGN PATENTS 1,163,541 4/1958 France 15-222 674,302 9/1940 Germany 15222 DANIEL BLUM, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 15-222; 401-201 

